What is Ninjutsu? A look into the Japanese martial art of the Ninja

Ninjutsu is a Japanese martial art that began in feudal Japan. Although it is not as applicable in modern-day society, it still has relevance today and is taught globally. Not only this but culturally Ninjutsu has continued to stay relevant throughout the years, with a nod to its history in popular culture. Video games such as ‘Shinobi’ are based on Ninjutsu, whilst the art is also used in the popular anime, Naruto.

Because of this, it could be argued that Ninjutsu has made something of a comeback in recent years. It should also be added that Ninjutsu is often mistakenly called ‘Ninjitsu’ as that is often its pronunciation. Although this may look correct, the original term is spelled Ninjutsu which derives from Ninja training mixed in with conventional Ju Jitsu. In terms of linguistics, the first part of the ‘Nin’ comes from ‘ninja’, whilst the second part ‘jutsu’ comes from Ju Jitsu.

This means that Ninjutsu is a combination of the pair and combines the stealth and mentality of a ninja with the fighting skills of a Ju Jitsu practitioner. Nonetheless, it is not uncommon to find people still call it Ninjitsu, much like people mistakenly call Kenpo ‘Kempo’.

So, what is Ninjutsu and what does it have to do with martial arts? In brief, Ninjutsu can be summarised into two categories. The first is the mental and spiritual aspect of the art. Basically, this is a common theme throughout martial arts that focuses on the mind as much as the physical body. With Ninjutsu, the mental side of things relies on thinking like a ninja which was a key aspect of its practitioners in traditional Japan.

This would mean thinking with intelligence, outwitting the enemy, and living in the shadows. The physical act of Ninjutsu which is mostly practiced today focuses more on the Ju Jitsu side of things. This involves a fighting system based around joint locks, striking, weapon fighting, and self-defense. It could be argued that modern Ninjutsu mostly focuses on the latter, as the mental side of being a Ninja isn’t applicable to modern society. In other words, whilst most of the physical attributes of Ninjutsu are still relevant, the mental side of things has lost significance over the years as Ninjas aren’t needed in modern warfare.

The mental side of training Ninjutsu

As mentioned, this was more of a lifestyle choice back in Japan, whereas now the focus isn’t as spiritual. Ninjutsu training would teach people how to go unnoticed which is obviously a key element of being a ninja. Because of this, you would have to train your thinking to behave in such ways. One method of this would be to keep a low profile. This means developing a personality based on quietness and blending in with the environment, as opposed to being an extrovert.

With this said, the mental aspects of Ninjutsu revolve around self-discipline and behaving in an honorable way. If you were serious about becoming a ninja, you couldn’t chase fame or glutton. Instead, you needed to control your actions and develop a mindset to match this. Often this would mean cutting off friends and keeping to yourself and embracing the thought process of an assassin.

Whilst this lifestyle may sound extreme in today’s society, it makes sense in the earlier days of Japanese history. The origins of Ninjutsu date back to around 600AD. With this said, life and society in Japan back then would be very different in comparison to modern-day. In short, Ninjutsu was the Japanese equivalent of becoming a spy which meant a life of espionage. Perhaps the best way to think about the mental side of things is to apply the mindset of a modern-day spy to feudal Japan.

There are clear benefits of living like a spy as it offers stoicism and can develop a strong mentality that cannot be broken. For instance, sometimes spies would be captured and tortured for information. This would test your limits and to counter this you would need to have strong resilience and have a powerful mind. This means Ninjutsu would deeply enhance the spiritual side of its practitioners.

Staying in the realms of feudal Japan, one of the skills of Ninjutsu was psychological warfare. Whilst physically defeating an opponent was always an option, defeating them through less invasive means was always another choice. For instance, if you could set doubt into the mind of an enemy and make them reconsider then victory was achieved. This would use considerably less energy than physical combat and was therefore a less risky option. An example could be a ninja spreading rumors about their enemy to ruin their reputation which could result in jail or death. This is just one situation of many where ninjas could use their cunning to win a battle, without even lifting a finger.

In most Ninjutsu dojo of today – the mental aspect of training is developed. However, it isn’t taken as seriously as it would have been in traditional Japan. Like many martial arts, the idea is to develop a person’s sense of humility and confidence. Whilst this can be done inside a modern dojo, the reality is you don’t need to go to extremes and think like a Japanese ninja. On the one hand, it’s good to improve your mindset, but most of the focus is on the physical side of things.

The physical side of training Ninjutsu

As mentioned, most modern dojos will look at the physical side of Ninjutsu. Generally speaking, there are several different physical feats that have to be developed to improve your Ninjutsu and master the techniques. One of these is the Ju Jitsu side of things, which mostly involves joint locks. Often, Ninjutsu will focus on the joint manipulation of the wrists which are used to control the opponent. This lends towards Japanese Ju Jitsu and Aikido which also favor risk attacks.

The idea of this is to get close to the enemy and twist their wrist which manipulates the movement of their arm and body. Some dojos will also look at larger joint manipulation such as standing armlocks. If applied with enough force, then you can potentially break the bone of someone’s arm which shows the importance of learning the ‘Jutsu’ side of Ninjitsu.

Elsewhere, there is also an emphasis on striking which can involve ninja-like chops and flying kicks. Stylistically, this lends more towards Kung Fu or modern Karate. This would date back to an era where weapons weren’t available during combat so using your body would be an essential tool. Lending into this, there is a great emphasis on speed in Ninjutsu. Obviously, the idea of a ninja is to be quick and stealthy.

Because of this, you will need to work on your timing for attack and defense. From the defensive side of things, you will train how to dodge strikes before they even land, whilst on an attacking level, you will learn how to strike quickly with precision. This often means improving your footwork which helps your overall level of athleticism.

It should also be noted that most modern dojos do not use the traditional robes of a ninja. Typically, most dojos will dress in a black gi, similar to that found in other martial arts with a belt. However, some people will dress like a stereotypical ninja which is mostly used to follow tradition and isn’t too common these days.

Lastly, Ninjutsu also focuses on weapon training. Often, this will involve the use of bokken which is an object resembling a sword. Because it’s too unsafe to train using real blades for obvious reasons, the bokken is a close substitute. In other cases, you can also train with plastic knives as well as longer staffs – so most blades are covered. In some cases, dojos will also look at using other weapons such as shuriken throwing stars, arrows, and claws.

Whilst these weapons aren’t used in modern-society as much as knives, this is more of a homage to the origins of Ninjutsu. Here, you will learn how to both attack and defend using these weapons. In terms of practical self-defense, learning how to disarm blades is very practical even today. With this in mind, Ninjutsu genuinely offers realistic training against weapons and helps practitioners improve their chances of survival during a confrontation or street fight. Having said this, however – the reality is that it’s unlikely an attacker will use claws or arrows to hurt you.

Is Ninjutsu really effective? The case of Steve Jennum

Due to its mysterious nature, some people are naturally skeptical about Ninjutsu. For instance, they will be quick to point out that most of the weapons used are unrealistic, or equally the joint manipulation doesn’t work on resistant opponents. However, these people may be surprised to hear of Steven Jennum. Jennum was a Ninjutsu black belt who entered the UFC MMA competition back in 1994. He won the UFC 3 event due to beating Harold Howard and then won another UFC match in the same year against Melton Bowen.

Bowen had a decent boxing record, but Jennum effectively used in Ninjutsu to defeat him with an armbar after throwing him to the floor. The next three matches were bad for Jennum who lost them all and retired from MMA. However, he retired with a record of 2-3 and was crowned a UFC champion. To this day he works as a police officer and proved to the world that Ninjutsu techniques could work against skilled opponents.

The implications of Jennum’s UFC victories are still felt today in Ninjutsu as he is an example of its effectiveness. This was welcomed by the art as like many traditional, Japanese martial arts it was on the decline since the 80s. In short, this was common with traditional arts which got left behind compared to modern arts such as boxing and MMA. However, at least with Jennum you could see there was still a place for Ninjutsu amongst these newer methods of combat.

The legacy of Jennum’s success proved that even in modern-day fighting that Ninjutsu has its place. Remember, some of his opponents were the best on the scene at that moment in time, such as Tank Abbott. The very fact that Jennum could hang with these guys and put his Ninjutsu to use proved that it had practical implications and wasn’t just based on espionage or fighting with weapons.

Final Thoughts

These days, some of the techniques used in Ninjutsu can be seen as outdated. For example, creating smoke bombs and traps isn’t applicable to fighting in modern situations. Having said this, you also have to understand the origins behind Ninjutsu and realize that when created, these were very necessary skills that could help defeat an opponent.

This means that Ninjutsu has stayed true to its beginnings and at its heart is focused on creating assassins who have a variety of skills to kill their enemy. Obviously, some of these methods are frowned upon by modern martial artists who may view them as dated and irrelevant when guns are involved.

Nonetheless, Ninjutsu still holds practical implications. As has been addressed, some of the sweeps, submissions, and weapons involved are genuinely effective when looked at in a modern setting. With this said, it’s unfair to only look at Ninjutsu through a negative lens and you should also focus on the practical benefits that it can bring. Further, a number of Ninjutsu practitioners will train the historic stuff out of interest and genuine curiosity, rather than believing it has a place in the modern world.

With this said, to answer the original question – Ninjutsu is a Japanese martial art that was used over a thousand years ago by ninjas. The idea of Ninjutsu was to train spies who could kill enemies through weapons as well as developing fighting skills with their bodies. Not only this, but it also used psychological warfare to defeat opponents by manipulating them and weakening morale.

Further, Ninjutsu also focused on the mental aspect of training which was used to improve the mind of its users. These days, certain aspects of the art may have changed or lost relevance. However, at the core Ninjutsu is still taught and stays true to its origins which are based around the lifestyle of becoming a ninja.

Want to learn more about Ninjutsu? Check out this book.